Steph points to common theme in Warriors' early-season losses originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
It's been two steps forward and one step back for the Warriors this season.
Their latest dip came Thursday night when they were unable to build off their two-game sweep of Minnesota Timberwolves, falling to the Devin Booker-less Phoenix Suns 114-93.
The Warriors have had two-game winning streaks on three separate occasions early on this season, and each time they have faltered going for their third straight win. After the loss in Phoenix, Steph Curry pinpointed what has plagued the Warriors in their nine losses this season.
"When the games are in the margins for us this year, the common theme is certain three-four minute windows we don't play with the right intentions," Curry said after the loss. "When that happens certain teams who can shoot the ball across the board, they hit two or three threes and they can blow a game open and we kind of lose any kind of momentum. That happened towards the end of the third quarter and that little three-minute window in the fourth. Learning lessons for us. We know it's a roller coaster and it's been like that all year. But if we're going to be the team we need to be, it's just a matter of learning those lessons in real-time and trying to figure it out."
The Warriors (10-9) haven't won or lost three-straight games this season. Thursday's game in Phoenix appeared to be a good opportunity to get that monkey off their back, but the Warriors were bad on offense which contributed to their defensive struggles in the desert.
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While the Warriors still are searching for consistency, Curry sees their resiliency as a reason to be optimistic going forward.
"We came in thinking this was a winnable game," Curry said. "Had a good energy coming off those two wins against Minnesota, even knowing their record wasn't great. We played extremely well. So, it's disappointing. But you always fall back to the big picture. We're obviously not a consistent team, but we're able to bounce back and that's kept us from falling into some lonely times. So I think for us, have confidence in that, go home and get a win Saturday, and again it's just educated as we go along. This season, it's interesting, to say the least."
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Every night is a new challenge for Curry, Steve Kerr and a Warriors team that still is discovering its identity.
Kelly Oubre continues to be inconsistent, which will test the patience of Kerr and the Warriors as this season draws on. Rookie James Wiseman recently was moved to the bench in favor of Kevon Looney to give the starting lineup a new look. The 19-year-old rookie has responded well, but it's clear he still has a lot of growing to do to become the player the Warriors need him to be.
This is a different Warriors team than in years past, and it's clear Curry still is getting used to life as an NBA mortal. He and the Warriors still have a lot of learning to do in their new NBA reality.
